


Sam’s Marvelous Island Vacation (with “friends”)

by Sheeswee



Category: Gone Series - Michael Grant
Genre: AU, Multi, Takes place around plague or fear I guess?, Trapped on an island, i might get around to tagging ships but for now it’s open for interpretation, im too lazy to write penny and bug sorry bout that ;;, ship anything as long as it ain’t twincest you nasties
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-15
Updated: 2019-01-16
Packaged: 2019-10-10 12:29:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,315
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17425913
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sheeswee/pseuds/Sheeswee
Summary: Now Diana was working on Quinn’s makeup, who had requested a “much bolder palette”. He pointed out to her a sunset orange and she got to work. In fact, Quinn instructed her on a few odd things. How the eyeliner should look, where the blush should be heaviest and the places he wanted highlight. It wasn’t until he asked that she draw whiskers across his cheeks that Sam realized all Quinn was really doing was asking for an elaborate cosplay of Naruto.





	1. Chapter 1

Caine sipped nonchalantly at his smoothie, ignoring the gnawing worry in his chest. After a moment’s pause he spoke.

“Repeat yourself? I don’t think I heard you quite right.”

“Astrid exiled Sam and me to this island for two weeks, she says we’ve been working too hard.” Quinn replied, “Although being stuck here with you isn’t exactly the definition of a vacation.” He then gave a longing look to the drink in Caine’s hand. “Although,”

“No,” Caine unconsciously held his glass a little closer to himself. “You? I could care less if you stay here, although you’ll be eating rations that belong to me. But Sam? Don’t even think about having him step one foot on this island. I’ll kill him.”

Quinn frowned. “He’s already here.”

“What,”

“We were exiled, so we’re here now.”

Caine slapped the drink onto the counter, earning another desperate glance from the Fisherman. “Where is he, then?! What’s he hiding for?” that brought a small smile to his lips. Sam was scared enough to not be in the same room, huh?

Quinn shrugged. “He’s been worked to the bone, dude. Said he was gonna go sleep in a real bed.”

Caine’s ego flare extinguished as quickly as it had come and he bit at his thumbnail absentmindedly. Sure, he could kill Sam in his sleep right now. It would prevent a lot of leadership issues. But everyone would know that it was Caine who killed him, and between the two brothers, it was obvious where the kids of the FAYZ’ loyalties lay.

Sam, the hero. Sam, the surfer. Sam, the son who wasn’t given away and shipped off to some-  
“Okay,” He was surprised that he’d said that, “stay a while,” he began to think. Could this be an opportunity? He knew already that he couldn’t beat the submission into his twin, but…

“Fisherman, I think we are going to become quite great friends.” Quinn gave him a sceptical look, but Caine could see it. As much as he’d matured, Quinn still feared him.

“I’m Quinn, if you were wondering.” Ah, yes. Caine had forgotten that.

\---

“Caine,” Diana’s voice was deep with disapproval. “This is an opportunity for you. For everybody.” She was pacing the floor of their bedroom, pausing occasionally to glare at him.

“Quinn, who feeds all those kids, and Sam, who leads all those kids, are right here without any bad intentions. And you want to kill them? This is your chance to make things right. To talk to them like people. I doubt you’re even capable of that.”

Caine rolled his eyes. If she wanted her to make amends with the two dudebros then she’d have to force him to. 

“Okay,” he interrupted, “I have a Plan B, too. I get all close with the Fisher kid and get him to turn on Sam. Then he’s my ally and I’m the new king. He becomes loyal to me and we all go to shore talking about how Sam killed himself. Sound good?”

Diana threw a pillow into his face and he caught it with an invisible power, dropping it next to him.

“Caine, do you know anything about either of those two? Quinn would never allow you to hurt Sam, his loyalty lies there.”

“He switched to my side before the Thanksgiving battle. I’m sure it won’t be too hard on him.”

“Because he was scared of you!” Diana hissed. “Can you please stop trying to mess things up for us? Let them live out their two week vacation in peace, then they go home, then we forget the whole thing. You told me you were done playing king.”

Caine sighed in annoyance. Diana was right that his plan wouldn’t work. She was right about that everytime. He sat slowly, stretching the kinks out of his back.

“Okay. Okay, I’ll let them stay, but if they pull a single stunt on me they’re dead.” He stood and walked to the bedroom door, buttoning his shirt as he went. The moment he stepped into the hallway he was grabbed and yanked forward by Sam. Caine flicked his hand quickly and his brother went sprawling into the wall. A rush of excitement made his fingers tingle. So they had come for a fight after all?

Sam began to say something but Caine wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. He began to raise Sam up, body pressed against the wall hard enough to crack the paint. Sam struggled as the air was forced from his lungs.

“Hey!” Diana and Quinn’s simultaneous disappointed voices broke his concentration just long enough for Sam to wheeze, “I surrender.”

Caine clicked his tongue, annoyed, and let his brother fall hard onto his knees.

“I need a,” Sam took a startled breath, “a boat. I have to get back… to Perdido beach. Kids will die without me.”

Stupid! He’d made a fool of himself an attacked for no reason. Well, it was self defense. He thought it was an attack.

Quinn gently helped Sam to his feet, eyes dark with concern. 

Caine barked a laugh and Sam gave him a glare.

“I need to get back. No tricks, no backstabbing, I just need to get back.” Sam’s eyes were unwavering. He was brave to stand up to the person who’d just had him writhing.

“We have no boats. Your fishing crew took them. Unless you want to try the yacht with no fuel and a hole the size of a bed in the bottom.” Caine ‘tsk tsked’ “You of all people should know how short we are in supplies. And I’m sure all your kids will be fine for a few weeks without their daddy giving them a goodnight kiss.”

“It’s more than that and you know it.” Sam growled. “You know how kids get when they’re scared, we’ve been living that reality for how long now? If I’m not there they’ll die, Caine. I need a boat.”

Caine twitched in anger. “I already told you that I have no boats! Taylor has access to this island, if they need you she’ll come. Talk to her next time she bounces in and see what she can do, but I am not floating you across that ocean.” They were face to face now, and Quinn was trying to pull Sam away.

“Brah, he’s right. We took all the boats we could find for fishing..”

Diana had already walked off, not wanting to be pulled in to another conflict.

Caine pushed Sam back gently and gave him a warm smile, enjoying the storm of anxiety on his twin’s face.

“Well, I hope you both enjoy your stay.”


	2. Chapter 2

Quinn was not enjoying his stay.

Well, he was more than Sam, but as long as Sam was on edge so was he. Now they stood on the cliff that faced Perdido beach and Sam had his hands cupped over his eyes, peering at the speck of land across the water.

“Yeah, I could swim that.” He commented.

“Brah, we’re ameature surfers, not olympic swimmers.” Quinn responded. “I’m not looking to lose my best friend when we need you.”

Sam didn’t move, he just kept watching the distant land.

Quinn pushed Sam’s arms down from his face and wrapped fingers around his wrist. Sam’s pulse beat rapidly. He felt trapped. Quinn had seen Sam work himself into corners before. He was the kind of guy to not care much for himself but care too much for everybody else. Their lives before the FAYZ, Sam had been fiercely protective of Quinn when he needed it. Whether it was from bullies or teachers or even the ocean waves that sometimes snagged them into a riptide and bashed them against sharp coral. Sam always came to his aid. He always pulled him to his feet asking, “You good, dude?”

It’s because Quinn was his only friend then. His only person to protect. It was different now, Sam had a lot more people to care about. A lot more people that meant more to him than his old surfing buddy from a life they didn’t live anymore. 

“Why don’t we eat?” Sam finally asked. “I think relaxation is actually just what I need.”

“That’s the best thing you’ve ever asked me.” Quinn laughed as Sam pulled him back to the mansion, heartbeat still racing in against Quinn’s fingers. 

Sam, why can’t you spend a day being you again?

They foraged through the pantry, crying out in excitement and occasional genuine tears as they found foods unseen for months.

“Brah,” Quinn choked out, holding a bag like it was glass, “I haven’t seen a potato chips in years.”

Sam stared at the shelves distantly, no doubt wishing he could share with the starving kids back home. But he had struggled with starvation just as bad as anyone else, and his hungry gaze did not hide that.

With shaking fingers Quinn opened the bag, his breath hitching in need and emotion. The moment that the salty smell hit their noses they dove forward, grabbing handfuls of chips and eating greedily, catching every last crumb that managed to escape their grip. When the contents began to diminish and the stomachaches set in they rolled the bag up, sealing it tight and placing it carefully on the shelf.

They licked at their lips and their fingers for almost half an hour afterwards, wanting every last savory bit while battling the pains of a stomach used to emptiness.

The door to the pantry creaked open and Diana stared down at the two tear streaked and dazed looking boys.

“Food,” She said.

“Yeah,” Sam agreed, “food.”

\--

Diana watched as Quinn and Sam began to adjust to their new getaway. She was nervous at the way Sam twitched and paced, but soon realized it was just stress of being away. He wasn’t planning an attack, he was planning an escape.

Quinn, on the other hand, seemed perfectly fine having any form of comfort he could find. He’d made the switch of Brian from ‘Hatchet’ to Gatsby from ‘The Great Gatsby’ in only a day. Diana smiled at herself at that. Plenty of time to read when you had only a boy and an island to entertain you.

Caine, on the other hand, was not pleased at all. He was not one to comply to other people’s requests easy, and apparently breathing the same air as Sam was his limit. Now Caine was on the porch outside, dressed just as clean as he had been the day this hell began. No doubt he had a few candies to chew on as well.

Starvation did that to you. It made you nervous about food.

Diana heard excited voices and a clatter from the basement and smiled.

The truth was that she admired Sam. Where Caine was born to lead, Sam was not. Sam was born to be a temporary hero. Now he was forced to both lead and save at any time. He was strong for that. And he’d done a damn good job of being strong.

So hearing him and Quinn arguing about the rules of air hockey, a thing normal kids should have to argue about, made her smile. 

At that moment hands were around her waist and a mouth pressed to the nape of her neck.

“Caine,” She warned. 

“You look good. You’re getting your shape back.”

“Is that your attempt at a compliment? Or seduction.” Diana turned to face him and sighed at the gleam in his eyes.

“I think you can already tell.”

\--

“No! Two hands is cheating, it’s never even been a thing in air hockey!” Sam yelled, batting the puck away.

Quinn knocked it back with his duel handles, grinning as it bounced wildly and into Sam’s goal. “Yea, well maybe you should try being ambidextrous.”

“That’s not even applied to air hockey!” Sam whined, grabbing the puck and shoving it into his pocket.  
“Hey, put it back. Scared of losing?”

“I’m not playing it until one of your handles is on the floor.”

Quinn very exaggeratedly placed it on the floor, then crossed his arms.

“Okay, Mr. Mayor, my-“

Sam slapped the puck onto the table and scored a goal, earning a displeased cry from his friend.

“Well maybe you should try being faster!” Sam laughed.


	3. Chapter 3

Sam shuffled through the bathroom drawers, scoping out the inventory. Plenty of medicines and products typical to a bathroom. He held up a small container and flipped it open. A few tan palettes stared back up at him, and he absentmindedly dipped his finger into one.

“Didn’t know you were a makeup kind of guy.”

Sam whirled around, face heating up as he nearly knocked Diana over.

“I was just looking.”

Diana took it from him gently and gave it a longing stare.

“I used to love doing makeup.”

Sam wasn’t sure what he should say, so he ended up saying “Just put some on me.” He immediately began to shake his head, “Joking, joking-“ but Diana was already glowing with excitement. She grabbed his arm and pulled him along to one of the bedrooms, then pushed him onto a bed.  
“Stay here, I’m gathering all the supplies I can.”

Sam sat in a comfortable silence, amused and almost excited. He was a boy, so makeup was something he’d never expected to try. But Sam was all for trying odd new things.

Diana reappeared with arms full of tubes and brushes and things that Sam was a bit nervous about going near his face. Diana, on the other hand, was glowing with excitement.

“These people really are rich! Some of these products even my mom couldn’t afford!” She began gushing about this and that and suddenly uncapped what looked to Sam like a very stiff antennae.

Diana dipped it back into the cap a few times and lifted it to Sam’s eye who began to squirm with discomfort.

“What are you doing,” he asked, “Why’s it going in my eye?”

“It’s mascara you log.” Diana responded, grabbing Sam’s chin and tilting his face forward to hold him steady. “Keep your eyes open.” Sam shivered as it brushed uncomfortably close to his eye, feeling like his eyelashes were heavy, or sticky. “Blink a few times.” She commanded, and Sam did so, not wanting to argue with a girl holding a pointy stick to his face.

Diana hummed and moved to the other eye, repeating the process and then reaching for a thin box filled with colors. Diana moved smoothly and quickly as she began using her fingers and little nubby brushes to dab at his eyelids. He felt itchy but didn’t dare to move.

Soon it went from small and sticky brush strokes over his eyelids to powdery feather-like touches over his cheeks, and something like a pencil.

Sam heard the door to the room open and he cracked one eye, almost recoiling at the sight of a fairly frightened Quinn and Caine.

“Oh boys,” Diana said jauntily, “I think you came at just the right time. Take a seat, I’ll fix you both up.”

Caine stepped back, sneering. “No way you’re putting any of that stuff on my face.”

Quinn gave Caine a shove into the room. 

“Caine, we have no need for such toxic masculinity.” Quinn announced, then placed a hand on his chest. “Once you try the products they make for girls you never go back. My mom’s lavender hair conditioner worked wonders.”

Caine gave him a skeptical look and Sam nodded to himself. So that’s why Quinn always used to smell like flowers along with the permanent smell of salt water.

Diana sat the two boys down and began picking colors for them.

“Brah,” Quinn whispered, “Your eyes look beautiful.”

Sam gave him an awkward smile. 

“Thanks, so do yours.”

“But I don’t even have makeup on yet.”

“Dude, you don’t need makeup to look beautiful to me.”

“Brah…”

Diana began with Caine, most likely so he couldn’t escape while she worked on Quinn. Sam found it amusing to watch Caine twitch at every touch and ignored that he had down the same just a few minutes ago. It was spectacular to watch, Caine’s face was soon blooming with sharp angles and highlights and colors to accentuate his dark eyes. A swoop of eyeliner and a sheen of purple and suddenly Caine had eyes straight out of a Disney movie, not to mention the glow of his face and the angle of his jaw. No wonder he had been so popular with the girls, Sam thought, he must’ve gotten some genetics that he himself was lacking. Until Quinn held up a mirror to Sam’s face.

Sam’s jaw dropped, how was that him? He looked like a high definition version of himself, skin glowing and eyes were bluer than he thought possible. Diana hadn’t slipped colored contacts onto his eyes, had she? Sam tilted his head to get a good look from all angles. He was grateful that she hadn’t applied lipstick, or he would actually pass as a girl.

Now Diana was working on Quinn, who had requested a “much bolder palette”. He pointed out to her a sunset orange and she got to work. In fact, Quinn instructed her on a few odd things. How the eyeliner should look, where the blush should be heaviest and the places he wanted highlight. It wasn’t until he asked that she draw whiskers across his cheeks that Sam realized all Quinn was really doing was asking for an elaborate cosplay of Naruto.

Diana clasped her hands together and stared at the three boys.

“Wow, imagine if you three walked back into Perdido Beach like this?” Quinn huffed a laugh.  
“My crew would never let it go. I’d be capitain Naruto until I die.” Quinn paused at that, seemingly enjoying the thought, then said, “How do I make this makeup permanent?”

“Okay ladies, listen up!” Diana announced, “We are going to have a sleepover.”

“We already live in the same house,” Caine whined, looking nothing short of regal with his defined face.

“Well, tonight we’re going to be living in the same room. Which includes us telling scary stories, sharing any and all FAYZ gossip, admitting-“

“Shh!” Sam hissed so fearfully that the other three tensed, Caine raising a hand in preparation to use his powers. “If you say the word g-o-s-s-i-p too loud Taylor will appear. She always does.”

“I thought you wanted her to show up..?” Caine commented.

“You know, I think I’d like to stay like this for just a while longer.”

Diana cleared her throat and continued, “I’ll get you all some nice satin pajamas and we can make popcorn. Then secret spilling hours begin, got it?”

Caine looked mildly uncomfortable at the word secret and the other two boys nodded, carefully avoiding touching their faces to not ruin the layers of carefully drawn makeup.

Diana smiled and left to prepare for the night.


	4. Chapter 4

A gossip hour was the worst thing to get involved in when everything you did was shady business. But Caine had assigned himself a word of the week: opportunity. This was a chance to gain intel on the situation of Perdido Beach and their weak points.

Diana dished out bowls of popcorn that they all ate with an intense look of joy.

“So,” Quinn mumbled around a mouthful, “Everyone knows the status of Brekka, right?”

Caine blinked in confusion. Who or what was 

“No developments.” Sam answered sadly. “Brianna is probably straight, I don’t think Dekka is going to hear back from her anytime soon.”

“Or,” Diana cut in, “She could still be figuring herself out. I didn’t know I was into girls until, like, two years ago.” Caine whipped around to stare at her. Was everything they had a lie, then?! Diana went on talking, ignoring Caine’s confused stare. Maybe it was all a trick, their relationship a fake so she could be protected by someone strong. But to Caine it had been… it had been something! He began to gnaw at his thumb.

“Bisexuality exists, Caine.” Quinn commented. Ah, yes. Caine had forgotten that.

Okay, he had to focus on the task at hand. He didn’t care about Brianna’s sexuality issues, he needed to know how to take Sam down in battle! He needed to know their strongest points and their deepest fears. And so, he asked.

“Sam,” Caine felt a bit awkward, addressing him directly by name and not saying ‘brother’. “What is your biggest strength and your biggest weakness?” 

Diana, knowing that this was some sort of test, glared at him.

“It’s a genuine question,” he said, “we’re bonding.”

Sam stared at him, too, with eyes that were surely too blue.

“Well, my strength is that I have good balance. I don’t surf now, but I used to be super good at balancing.” Sam smiled, probably off in some fond memory.

“I have good balance too, I think.” Diana added.

Caine did not. He could barely ride a bike because he wasn’t able to stay upright. He didn’t feel the need to bring it up.

“One time,” Sam began, launching into a little story, “my mom wanted me to go to the attic to get something, but it was waaay up on the highest shelves. So basically I climbed all the way up, and I kept my balance perfectly so the shelves didn’t break or anything.”

“Brah, why not get a ladder? That’s so stupid.”

“Yeah, seems like you were reckless even before all this.”

“I dunno, it was like two years ago anyways!”

“Oh? You’re kinda tall now, though.”

“He wasn’t always, once Sam was-“

“Okay,” Caine cut them off, annoyed. “What makes you weak, brother?”

Sam sat back to think and a dark look crossed his face, features tinged with fear.

“Whips.”

Caine felt almost a moment of pity for his twin. He hadn’t seen it, but he’d been told stories of what Drake had done to Sam. How he’d flayed him until Sam’s back looked like a cross hatched pattern. How Sam had rode in and out of consciousness while he screamed and screamed until he was spitting blood.

“Dude, I did not know you were into bdsm.”

Everyone turned to stare at Quinn.

“What?” Quinn asked, “He just said whips make him weak in the knees. I didn’t know he was that freaky.”

“Why would you think I’m freaky in the first place?!” Sam cried out as Diana burst into a fit of laughter. Caine growled with frustration. None of this information was helpful to him! What would he do, send a pack of kids with whips to fight Sam, the laser shooting hero? 

“Your turn, Quinn.” Caine mumbled, not really caring about his stupid questions anymore.

“Okay, so,” Quinn started, “My strength is that I fall in love easily.”

“I don’t really know if that’s a strength..” Diana said.

“And my weakness…” Quinn glanced up at Caine, a dreamy quality taking over his features, “Are those beautiful dark eyes of yours.”

Caine shifted a bit, looking anywhere but at Quinn as Sam let out a squawk and punched Quinn on the shoulder.

He’d been confessed to plenty of times, that was what happened when you were handsome and rich, but not often by boys. And not in a situation like this, where they were trapped together. Diana seemed fine, laughing along with them, and— oh, it was a joke.

Quinn was laughing hard, “He just got-“ wheeze, “the most shocked expression!” Quinn wiped at his eye and exclaimed in horror at the orange smeared across his thumb. He now had a huge streak under his eye and across his cheek.

“It was gonna happen eventually,” Diana gave him a reassuring smile.

It seemed genuine to Caine, Quinn was not that good of an actor, surely? Quinn caught his confused gaze as he wiped his thumb off.

“It wasn’t a lie, you seriously have the most beautiful eyes ever. But you’re too… different to be my type.” It was a polite way to say, ‘I think you’re sexy but I’m not into assholes’. That was an ego blow in some way, that Quinn acknowledged his looks but not his personality. Once again, Caine was annoyed.

“Fine,” he snapped, “Diana your turn.”

“My strength,” she paused, “probably my body. Guys do whatever I want when I show a little skin.”  
Sam and Quinn nodded, they agreed, annoying Caine even more. He was not controlled by her body, or her. He never listened to her commands.

And you pay the price for it, his mind whispered.

“My strength is me.” Caine announced. It was true, there was no other Caine in the world and there never would be, because he was the perfect human.

“And my weakness is my huuuge dick,” Quinn mocked, “which is about as big as my ego.”

Caine was uncertain if he should be offended or not, so he finally hit his limit in annoyance.

“Out! Leave, we are not having a sleepover, we aren’t having any more gossip, or using up anymore food, or pillow fights or ghost stories or anything! This sleepover is done.”

In a matter of seconds Caine was locked out of the room as the other three carried on their night of fun.


	5. Chapter 5

The next morning Quinn and Sam stumbled out of Diana’s room with messy hair and sleepy eyes. They had taken off their makeup before passing out after Diana had told them the horror stories of terrible makeup induced breakouts.

Quinn had gone to take a nap, so now it was just Sam.

He was being eaten away by guilt and anxiety. Perdido Beach was unprotected. Sure, Edilio was capable of handling trouble and Albert would keep the kids in line. Sure, Astrid had the council to rely on and a soldier that Sam had secretly assigned to protect her. But Drake was out there. He’d seen the flayed bodies after the fire, he’d seen the curling python of a whip in the smoke, he’d seen himself struck over and over and over.

Drake had died. But he lived.

Sam dug his nails into his palms and took deep, steadying breaths. It’s okay, everyone there was fine. It had only been three days. He only had eleven more to go.

And it wasn’t even bad on the island. Caine was surprisingly tame other than his attitude. Quinn was back to his old self, actually laughing and telling his old jokes. And he didn’t know Diana especially well, but she seemed to be having fun. Why was he the only one who couldn’t let go? Didn’t he hate this role of leading anyways?

He leaned onto the kitchen counter and put his head in his hands, wondering how many more lives he’d lose to the demons of this world. Demons named Hunger, demons named Fear, demons named Powers and Demons named Drake.

“Sammy! You look so good all cleaned up 

He whipped around to see Taylor standing behind him. Before he could say anything she was wrapped around his waist, hugging hard. 

“Are you all alone right now? You’re so cute, can I have a kiss? Just kidding I know you and Astrid are together, but if you-”

“Taylor,” he interrupted and she released him. “How are they? What’s happening back there?” He couldn’t hide the worry that crept into his voice.

“Oh, well Drake came back and-” Sam’s blood ran cold, he knew he shouldn’t have left. How many lives did Drake take while Sam was, what, exchanging secrets at an overnight party?! “Brianna chopped him up real good, all into a hundred little bits! So we locked a bunch in different boxes and, oh! I have something for you!” Taylor popped away and Sam took a sigh of relief. Thank god for Brianna, there was nothing that girl couldn’t do. And Taylor hadn’t mentioned any deaths, so he hoped that was the end of her horror story.

Taylor reappeared, doubled over with the weight of something dangling from her hands.

“Holy SHIT!” Sam cried out, scrambling back and knocking various cups onto the floor. Taylor was holding a decapitated head by the hair, grinning at Sam like it was a trophy.

“Surprise!”

Taylor held it closer to Sam, enjoying his panic.

“I’LL KILL YOU!” The head suddenly roared, “PUT ME THE FUCK BACK TOGETHER AND MAYBE I WON’T WHIP THE SKIN OFF YOU!”

“Taylor, why would you bring that as a gift!?”

“I wanted to see your reaction, plus it might make you less stressed if you knew Drake wasn’t out there.”

Now Caine let out a yelp, who had just come to see the commotion, Diana clinging onto his arm in fear.

Taylor gave them a wave and set the cursing head on a counter. 

“Hi guys,”

“Sam, kill it!” Diana hissed.

“I don’t wanna burn the house down, let me bring it outside.” Sam replied, putting on an oven mitt. He was not touching that psycho bare handed.

Sam lifted Drake’s head carefully, half expecting a whip to grow from his sliced neck. Diana and Caine stepped aside, holding each other comically as if Sam was the brave parent disposing of a scary bug.

“FUCK YOU SAM!” The head cried wheezily, “I’LL KILL YOU FOR THIS! I’LL-“ 

Sam placed him propped against a tree, then backed up a few steps. Diana walked over to Drake’s head, giving him a hard kick between the eyes, then spat on him. Taylor bounced over, doing the same. Quinn and Caine clapped from nearby and Sam motioned for the two girls to move. When they were out of the way he raised his hands, taking one last hard glare at the tormentor of his every nightmare and his every waking thought.

“Come on, Sammy! You have a final message for me, yeah?” Drake rasped.

“Shut up,” blasts of heat and light hit Drake directly, whose skin had no time to burn and began to flake into ashes within seconds. Sam kept his light firing, even until there was just a gray pile where Drake once was. Even until he was burning a hole into the base of the tree. Even until- Quinn shook him and the light died out. 

“He’s gone, brah. He’s gone.”

Sam stared at the ashes. No, no he was never gone. But for now he was. Maybe he would sleep without nightmares tonight.

Caine lifted a large rock from the cliff face and floated it to the tree, settling it down over the pile of ashes. When the rock was in place a collective sigh of relief was breathed.

“I’m taking a bath and leaving, see ya.” Taylor announced, bouncing out.

Quinn tugged on Sam’s arm. 

“I found a ton of cool stuff in a shed, I think they belonged to Sanjit and his siblings. It’s just a huge storage space filled with toys and stuff, you gotta see some of these.”

He led Sam through the backyard and past a grove of fruit bearing trees. Beyond them a gravel path led to what looked like a garage. Quinn grabbed at the handle of the entrance and pulled it, like a garage door that opens up. Sam gasped at the inside. Dirt bikes, normal bikes, a golf cart, remote control toy helicopters, boxes of uninflated beach floats, frisbees, hula hoops, two drones, a few scooters and various wheeled toys, and…

Sam touched the surfboard gently, feeling along the waxy surface at the small scrapes in the wood. She was a worn board, but as beautifully crafted as any professional one Sam had ever seen. He turned to look at Quinn who looked back with the same gentle awe. Quinn reaches behind Sam for another board and thumbed at it softly.

“Hey brah… I know there’s no waves anymore, but..”

Sam nodded. They were going to use these boards, however they could.


End file.
